


Time of Your Life, Except Not

by SecretlyAnonymous



Series: ARscbpsup [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003) - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, Hurt Obi-Wan Kenobi, Obi-Wan Kenobi Needs a Hug, Time Travel, ahsoka sees 12yo obi-wan and goes "thats my child now"
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:35:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24976198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SecretlyAnonymous/pseuds/SecretlyAnonymous
Summary: Ahsoka wasn't sure what the Force wanted, but it sure wanted it. Almost against her own will, she journeys across an ocean moments after an almost crash-landing to find Obi-Wan Kenobi, twelve years old, enslaved
Relationships: CT-7567 | Rex & Ahsoka Tano, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Ahsoka Tano, Qui-Gon Jinn & Ahsoka Tano, Qui-Gon Jinn & Obi-Wan Kenobi
Series: ARscbpsup [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1806274
Comments: 12
Kudos: 274





	Time of Your Life, Except Not

**Author's Note:**

  * For [May_Seward](https://archiveofourown.org/users/May_Seward/gifts).



> so this is a prequel to the work I posted yesterday. It's how Ahsoka managed to get to Obi-Wan and how they ended up in the position in they were in at the beginning of "And Kenobi Makes Three"  
> second in a new one-shot series of mine! there's two versions, they both have the same fics, but one is uploaded in the order I write them in, and the other is uploaded in chronological order.  
> Once again for May, who helped me plan this!

“Prepare for a crash-landing!” Rex shouted at her, and she quickly sat down in the co-pilot’s seat and strapped down. They were speeding over a sea, and if they were lucky, they’d land on the coast she could just barely make out in the darkness. Rex sure seemed to be trying his best to put them down there. 

She snatched a glance at the controls. Everything seemed to be working right. Why were they crashing? But then they weren’t as the ship jerked, spun a few times, and began slowing down. 

“Rex?” 

“Hyperspace spat us out directly toward a planet,” he said by way of explanation. “I’ll have to land so we can see if there’s anything wrong. I wouldn’t be surprised if we damaged the hull.”

He kept his course toward the coast, setting down just beyond the beach. “You grab the stuff while I check out the damage?” He suggested.

“Sure,” she said, heading towards their storage room. It kept mainly rations (though there was an eating area where they also kept food), tools, weapons, and material to take care of most basic repairs. She grabbed all the tools and what she thought might be useful from the materials and headed outside. Rex was peering inside. When he saw her, he said, “Ah great. I think that’s good. Care to help?”

“Do you even have…” the moment she set foot on the dirt, the Force called to her, tugging her toward the ocean.

“Ahsoka?” Rex’s eyebrows were furrowed when she finally mustered the strength to turn to him. 

“The Force wants me to go somewhere,” she said. 

“Then… I suppose you should do it?”

“I don’t want to leave you here alone. We don’t even know where we are.”

Rex’s mouth twisted in a wry smile. “I’m not helpless, Ahsoka. I’ll fix the hull -” she could see now that some of the plating on the nose burned off, “- and figure out where we are. You go follow the Force.”

“Right,” she said, and finally gave back into the insistent pull the Force was exerting on her mind. Out, it wanted her to go. But how?

A glance down the coastline revealed a dock, and nearby, a building. Perhaps she could borrow a boat. When she arrived, she found three Imbats, and blinked in surprise. The creatures were typically hired as security by shady organizations, cruel people who wanted to keep their employees in line. Or their slaves. 

Dread roiled in her gut. She fought the urge to draw her lightsabers or her gun.

Instead, she walked right through the front door. 

“Hello,” she said, and didn’t flinch when three guns were pointed at her. “I was wondering if I could borrow a boat.”

Instead of an answer, all three guns went off. Ahsoka flipped over the charges and had her own gun out in a second - safer than her lightsaber, with the way the Empire was hunting her. One of the Imbats was down by the time she landed. The second went down an instant later, thought the third charged her and attempted to wrestle her into submission. He was so much taller than her it was difficult to get a good position, but she managed to get her gun pointed at him and fired.

What was this place, she wondered. Each of the three… guardsmen? had a device on them that looked a lot like a detonator to her. She took them and wondered. 

The room was almost empty except for monitors that displayed a few different rooms and what looked like mines, and a stationary comm. In one mine, she could see a body. Not good, if they were leaving bodies. 

“How do I help them,” she asked aloud. The Force, in response, strengthened its tug once again, and she found herself over the water before she knew what happened. “Hey!” she tried to convey her strongest put-upon  _ rude _ to the Force, but received no response. 

Before long, a city rose over the horizon. As she got close, she could see it was a station, maybe going all the way to the sea floor. 

Sneaking into the station was woefully easy, and Ahsoka saw no sign of the empire. Strange. Even if it were a private enterprise, the empire would normally be all over these kinds of places. The lack of shiny white armor put her on edge. 

One hand on her gun, the other on her saber, she made her way forward, ducking behind any cover she could see. The place wasn’t well taken care of, wet, a little muddy, rusty. 

If she hesitated, the Force nudged her along. It certainly made whatever she was supposed to be doing easy, because it took very little time to find whatever the Force wanted her too. On the floor in front of her were several beings wearing identical, worn down jumpsuits and grey collars. The Force was swirling around one of them - a boy, who was pretending to sleep while wrapping his collar in the Force and growing more frustrated as whatever he was trying to do failed. A padawan, perhaps, stolen from his master, though he didn't have the typical human padawan haircut.

Ahsoka was all too familiar with being stolen, but maybe it had been good for this kid. The Empire clearly hadn’t made it out this far; being stuck here may have saved his life. 

She made a small noise to alert the boy and he froze, a sense of fear flooding the Force that was no longer concentrated on the collar. His eyes stayed closed, but she could feel him attempting to probe her with the Force. He looked, and felt, strangely familiar. 

“Hey kid,” Ahsoka said, “What are you doing here?”

Finally, he gave up the pretense of sleep and opened his eyes. “What do you think?” he muttered, rolling over so his back was facing her. An odd decision. She could attack him without warning.

“I think,” Ahsoka shrugged, “That the Force told me to come here, but didn’t tell me why.”

He rolled back over. “The Force? You’re a Jedi?”

While Ahsoka didn’t consider herself a Jedi, she had a heart. The kid clearly needed a yes, here. So she said, “Yeah.”

He stood up. “If you’re here, then the Council knows?”

And didn’t that startle Ahsoka. “... No,” she said, “I haven’t been in contact with the Council lately. I got spat out of hyperspace and the Force practically forced me here. I think it wanted me to find you.”

“Really?” 

A being wearing a similar garb to the kid reached out and smacked him. “Go to sleep Obawan.”

Ahsoka blinked. “Is that your name?”

“Ah,” the kid said, making a hasty bow. “I apologize, master. I am Obi-Wan Kenobi.”

“Oh,” Ahsoka said. That didn’t make sense, but she bowed as well, the bow of a knight to an unfamiliar padawan, “I’m Ahsoka Tano.”

At that time, Rex commed her. “Ahsoka, something weird is going on.”

Ahsoka held her comm up to her mouth. “I know. We’ll talk about it when I get back, okay?”

Rex made a noise of affirmation and the comm went silent. “Let’s get out of here,” she said to Obi-Wan.

“Can’t,” he grunted angrily, “Bomb collars. Detonators are on-shore.” 

Ahsoka held up her spoils. “You mean these detonators?”

He blinked. The other being who’d woken up stood as well. “You have the detonators?”

The being was of an unfamiliar species to Ahsoka, but was clearly in bad shape. “Where’d you get them?”

She handed two of the detonators over the being. “Killed some guards on-shore,” she said, patting her gun. She turned to Obi-Wan. “Let’s go. Your collar won’t go off. I destroyed the place, too.”

As she said the words, the memory came back to her, of drawing her sabers and slashing the room a few times over.

Odd.

“Where will we go,” Obi-Wan asked.

“To my ship,” Ahsoka said, “To take you away from here.” 

“But we can’t!” he protested, and Ahsoka sent him a quizzical look. “OffWorld is trying to hurt this place. We can’t let them!”

Ahsoka had, unfortunately, gotten good at ignoring those in need. Every aspect of her being  _ ached _ to save others. But she had few resources and her very presence often brought the Empire down wherever she went, although she wasn’t entirely sure the Empire was here. But Obi-Wan’s earnest look and desire to help had her giving in. “Alright,” she said, “But you’ll have to direct me to where we’re going.”

“Bandor,” he said, “I’m fairly certain Xanatos is behind all this.”

“Fairly certain?” she asked gently. Obi-Wan hesitated before explaining what had happened to end up with him enslaved. He was finished by the time they reached the boat.

She took it all in, and before commenting on anything else, said, “Do you have Master Jinn’s side of the story?”

He shook his head. “I was going to ask next time I saw him, but I haven’t seen him since.”

Ahsoka nodded. “I suggest you get his side of the story before you make any judgements. Even if Xanatos was being honest, we often feel personally slighted by mistakes our loved ones make, and we may unintentionally twist the truth.”

Obi-Wan looked down. “I will.” 

The boat thankfully had coordinates already plugged in, so all Ahsoka had to do was find the coordinates for Bandor and the boat was off on autopilot. “Is he your master?” 

Obi-Wan glanced up at her in surprise. “No. He refuses to take another padawan. I am trying to prove myself to him, but he seems only to dislike me and anything I do. I will age out soon. I may as well stay here; I’ll be joining the agri-corps anyway.” 

A suspicion that Ahsoka had been denying took root. Ageing out was something that was discontinued at the beginning of the war. Ahsoka herself had been fourteen when she’d been assigned to Anakin.

“Why do you not seek another master?” she wondered.

Obi-Wan shook his head. “There is no one else. Master Yoda says Master Jinn is the only person in the entire order looking for a padawan. And he was wrong about that.”

A part of Ahsoka was resigned to the decision she’d just made, while the other half quivered in excitement. She smiled wryly. “Then Master Yoda doesn’t know about me.”

Obi-Wan’s head shot up. “What.” His voice was hoarse.

“Obi-Wan Kenobi,” she said, bowing in the traditional bow, “Would you do me the honor of becoming my padawan?”

He blinked a few times, as if trying to process the request, then hastily bowed back similarly to how he had on the station. “I will, thank you.” 

Then he sat back down carefully, as if he expected to feel different now. Ahsoka herself hadn’t, nine years ago, but maybe that was because she’d been full of adrenaline from the battle.

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Ahsoka entertained herself watching Obi-Wan attempt (and fail) to control his expression. He kept smiling, then trying to smooth it out into something more dignified, before he lost control and smiled again. 

Shore arrived quickly and they were soon in a speeder, heading towards the dome. Ahsoka hoped they could find whatever they were looking for before the sun came up. It would be easier to work in the dark.

Obi-Wan led her through the grass to the far wall. “Watch,” he said, and pressed his hand to the wall. It turned translucent and inside, she could see a box with a circle painted on it. 

“That’s the symbol of Offworld, the open circle,” he said. “There’s a door over here,” he led her to the door. 

Funnily enough, there were explosives in the box. “Have you seen boxes with these symbols anywhere else?”

Obi-Wan shook his head. “I haven't been here long, maybe someone else has? RonTha has been showing me around, he knows a lot. And VeerTa is in charge of the mines, or something.”

“Do you know where to find them?” 

Obi-Wan thought for a second. “Not RonTha is somewhere in here.”

“Do you think you could find him by his signature?” 

Obi-Wan bit his lip. “Yeah, I think so.”

“Let’s go,” she ushered him to the speeder. “I’ll drive. You reach out. Find RonTha.” 

They were able to find him by the time the sky began to lighten the barest amount. Ahsoka ended up lifting the box with the Force after Obi-Wan made them get out of the speeder and walk. Finally, Obi-Wan stopped and knocked on a door. 

RonTha opened, clearly having just woken up. “Master Jinn? I didn’t - Obi-Wan?” His eyes snapped open wide at the sight of Obi-Wan, then trailed to her and the box. “What’s going on?”

“We found this,” Obi-Wan said, and Ahsoka set the box on the floor for RonTha to look inside. His eyes widened more. 

“Not possible.” He denied, voice trembling.

Pity welled up for the man. He was clearly unprepared to handle this. “I’m sorry to say that we found this in a secret storage room within the dome. Perhaps you should get someone more prepared to handle this?” 

RonTha ran back inside. Ahsoka waited patiently. 

“Obi-Wan, are you good with a lightsaber?” 

He looked at her in surprise. “I suppose I am for my age. I’m sure there’s a lot I can learn from you, though.”

She smiled gently. “Take this,” she held out one of her sabers, “And go warn anyone in the mines you can. Maybe see if you can find VeerTa.”

“I couldn’t,” Obi-Wan protested, but Ahsoka showed off her other saber and her gun.

“I am not weaponless,” she assured him, “And I will feel better if my padawan had a weapon to defend himself with.”

His eyes went a little starry at the word ‘padawan,’ and he took the saber with no other protests. 

RonTha returned a few moments after Obi-Wan left. “I have been notified that Master Jinn is coming. I am to meet him and hold him off until proper procedure can be put in place.”

Ahsoka smiled wryly. “Something tells me he won’t listen.”

RonTha gave her a look. “Perhaps the knowledge of the bombs will distract him from his mission.”

Ahsoka nodded. “I would trust him to deal with it appropriately.”

RonTha nodded and they walked in silence the rest of the way to the entrance of the dome. When the Jedi master was in sight, RonTha skittered forward. “I am RonTha,” he introduced himself, “I am happy to welcome -”

“Where is Si Treemba?” he scowled, though he didn’t seem to be aware of it. The great Qui-Gon Jinn, Ahsoka thought. She’d only heard of him through her master, as Master Kenobi had always refrained from talking about his master, except for just after they’d met. The first and only time Master Kenobi spoke of his master was to comfort Ahsoka. She’d been struggling to feel accepted by Anakin after his initial rejection of her, but knowing  _ Master Kenobi _ , one of the best Jedi in the order and her grandmaster, had been through the same thing and turned out  _ like that _ was comforting.

“He is inside the dome,” RonTha said, “But there is something -”

“Take me to him.”

Ahsoka narrowed her eyes and stepped forward. “I don’t know what you want with this Si Treemba, but it cannot be more time-sensitive than the information I have for you.”

He turned to her and looked her over, frowning like he found her lacking. “And you are?”

She bowed respectfully, spitefully. “Jedi Knight Ahsoka Tano. It was mere chance, or perhaps the will of the Force that I crash-landed here last night and uncovered a plot to destroy the dome and perhaps other parts of the planet.”

That seemed to stop the master in his tracks. He bowed back, introducing himself. “Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn. I’m afraid I haven’t heard of you before…” he hesitated to continue. “A plot? But I must find Obi-Wan.”

That's what had him in such a state? She felt a little better, knowing he cared enough to look for the boy. “Padawan Kenobi is safe, and will remain that way. You may direct your attention to the plot without fear that he will be harmed if you remove your attention from him.”

Jinn nodded hesitantly. “That’s good to know. But he is not a padawan.”

Ahsoka allowed her face to show that she  _ wanted _ to make a face at him, but wouldn’t. “As of a few hours ago,” she said, a teeny bit snappy, “he is.”

Jinn swallowed. “Ah,” he said. “Good for him, then. About this plot, I suppose?”

Ahsoka nodded and showed him the storage container. “Obi-Wan found this in a secret compartment. He fears that there are many of such bombs placed in strategic locations. I sent him to the mines to inform VeerTa.” 

Jinn looked in the container and turned white. “This is not good. Ion bombs?”

Ahsoka nodded. “Yes, ion bombs.” 

Jinn said, “We need to inform the leadership of this planet of this development.” He turned to RonTha. “Can I trust you to tell your superiors?”

RonTha nodded. Jinn turned toward her. “I’m Jedi Ambassador, I should go to the mines to talk to VeerTa, SonTag, and Clat’Ha. Would you like a ride?”

Ahsoka nodded. “That would be much appreciated. I must get back to my own mission, so once you are sure you have everything under control, I will be taking my padawan and leaving.”

They left the container with RonTha and made their way to Jinn’s vehicle. “You are sure your mission is safe for a twelve-year-old boy?”

“Obi-Wan will be fine,” she assured the man, “I will not allow him to come to harm.” 

He nodded and handed her a lightsaber. “This is Obi-Wan’s. Xanatos took it when he kidnapped Obi-Wan.”

She took it. “I am sure he will be glad to have his own lightsaber back.”

Jinn nodded and focused back on the road. When the mining town was in sight, a speeder pulled up behind them. They began shooting and Ahsoka blinked in shock. Somehow, after she’d decided she was thirty years in the past, she had also decided random speeder-chase shoot-outs would stop. That had been a hallmark of war, in her experience.

“Who is this,” she shouted, deflecting the shots back to their shooter.

“Xanatos,” Jinn said, “He’s in charge of Offworld.”

“Oh so he’s trying to hurt this planet  _ and  _ kill us?” 

Jinn made an affirmative noise, and Ahsoka said, “That makes this so much easier.”

“Makes wh -” 

Ahsoka was already gone, having jumped off Jinn’s speeder onto the one following them. She figured it was a pretty safe bet that the man with the Offworld logo scarred onto his face was Xanatos. He managed to block her first strike with his own red lightsaber before he lost control of the bike, spinning out of control. They were both thrown from the speeder, but Ahsoka was prepared. She had, unfortunately, had her share of speeder-bike lightsaber fights. While Xanatos was still groaning on the ground, she was picking herself up and grabbing the lightsabers. 

By the time she got to him, he was standing up and sort of prepared for a fight. “Who are you,” he demanded. 

“I’m Ahsoka Tano,” she said with a small smile. He charged at her, and she caught his saber with her white one. He was strong, and grinned at her in perceived victory, before his smile froze as she activated Obi-Wan’s lightsaber right into his gut. 

She let him fall to the ground, and put her other saber through his heart, putting him out of his misery. Grabbing his saber, she made her way to his speeder-bike. Jinn was stopped ahead, gaping at her. “What,” she said as she approached.

“Nothing,” he looked away. “It’s just. I was always too attached to Xanatos for anyone’s good.”

“Oh,” she said, “I’m sorry.”

“Let’s just go.” 

Ahsoka’s first order of business was to get Obi-Wan’s collar off. VeerTa was able to get her some tools, and she made quick work of the collar once she had them. Obi-Wan showed her and Jinn the trick with the false walls, and demanded to know the truth about Xanatos.

Ahsoka leaned down to her padawan’s ear when Jinn hesitated. “Xanatos is dead, and Master Jinn cared about the man. Perhaps you could postpone your questioning.”

Obi-Wan frowned at her but nodded. “Okay. When are we leaving?”

“I think now is okay. Neither of us have slept this past night, nor have we eaten. We have given Master Jinn and Bandomeer enough information that they should be okay in our absence.”

Obi-Wan nodded, so Ahsoka turned to Jinn. “My padawan and I must be leaving now. We have our own mission to prepare for.”

Jinn nodded, and Ahsoka placed her hand on Obi-Wan’s shoulder.

She was halfway to the ship when she remembered she never talked to Rex, or told him she’d acquired a padawan.

That was going to go down well.


End file.
